Jeff Francoeur traded to Mets for Ryan Church

[Devil Wears Prado]

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2009/07/mets-trade-ryan-church.html

Mets, Braves Swap Church For Francoeur
By Mike Axisa [July 10, 2009 at 4:59pm CST]

5:01pm: David Lennon tweets that Church was traded to Atlanta for Jeff Francoeur

5:00pm: Bart Hubbuch of The NY Post tweets that the Ryan Church has "apparently been traded." No word yet on any of the details. Stay tuned to MLBTR for updates.

[Agent-X-]

Yesssss!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Lauren T.]

A friend just called and said it's on MLB Network. I... wow. Ryan Church?!

[Dreamscape]

Yahoo confirms (http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_ylt=AjZL7XlY9247zeKuI.dLBX2FCLcF?slug=txbravesmetstrade&prov=st&type=lgns) it. I guess this is "get something for nothing" trade. Did we really need another light-hitting left-hand hitting outfielder? No, probably not. But then, it's better than the light-hitting right-hand hitting outfielder who can't get on base.

[HaRdCoReBrAvEsFaN]

not that I'm really worried, but Jeff might acutually be worse playing in New York...

[jamminHANES]

Greatest Braves related news I've heard this year.

[BraveFan]

The Mets must have watched the game last night.

[luvdembravos]

Wow! Hope it's true. Church is no game changer but at least he gets on base more often than Francoeur.

[Dreamscape]

If he goes to New York and doesn't suck, I will cry.

[Devil Wears Prado]

Any chance we will package Church off to another team? I know we just traded for him, but like Dreamscape said, we don't need another lefty outfielder. If anything, I'm just happy that we got rid of Francouer. I don't think anyone wanted him before, and I think the Mets are just desperate to find a boost in their lineup. But now that Francouer is gone and he's a Met, I hope he does worse in New York!

[Dreamscape]

Mets fans...largely split on the deal. Seems to be at best a "hey, we shook up the clubhouse."

http://www.metsblog.com/2009/07/10/news-mets-acquire-francoeur/#comments

[Andy G.]

I'm wondering if Anderson's days are numbered with us. His defense is way below average, and even we he's hitting well, it's not enough for our team. We have Church now, so maybe the Braves are working out a deal for a right handed hitter. I could see Vazquez being dealt with Medlen taking his spot in the rotation until Hudson is ready. My feelings on Vazquez being dealt would depend on the hitter we get back and any other parts in the trade.

[Andy G.]

Oh, yeah, I still love you Jeff Francoeur. It sucks you're with the Mets, because it's harder to pull for you now. I will pull for you, though.

[BigWorm]

You never, ever, never, ever trade with your rival.

[bravestud]

Goodnight, sweet prince.

[sdp]

Adios, Jeff. I hope you hit--New York fans will be ruthless in their displeasure.

[bmcvay10]

Confirmed by mlb.com: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090710&content_id=5804160&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb

[Dreamscape]

You never, ever, never, ever trade with your rival.
Unless you can make them worse!

[BigWorm]

you know he's going to kill us, when we face him 100 times a year. stupid move IMO

Church is a punch and judy has been never was, at least Francoeur was young.

[BraveFan]

I hope this isn't the only move the Braves make b/c we still need to upgrade the outfield. Diaz and Church's splits make them a perfect platoon, so I think that the Braves may aquire a LFer or possibily a 1B.

[sdp]

you know he's going to kill us, when we face him 100 times a year. stupid move IMO

Church is a punch and judy has been never was, at least Francoeur was young.Stupid move for the Mets. Frenchy's power will seriously vanish at Citi Field.

[Davey Crockett]

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4320078

[nuke_laloosh]

Another pretty good trade made by Wren. 3 men to platoon 2 corner OF spots. Church OBP is over 30 pts higher than Frenchy.

[Dreamscape]

Church makes fewer outs than Francoeur. Therefore, the Braves win offensively. You can't have a productive offense when a guy can't even reach base 30% of the time.

And my phrase earlier of "light-hitting" wasn't very fair to Church. His numbers at Citi Field have been pretty horrible, but that park has also taken the power from David Wright. His road numbers are a lot better, coming in with an .804 OPS. Does that mean for sure that if you take Citi Field from him, he'll be stellar, no. But it's a positive sign. Francoeur was always going to be an .800 OPS at his best. Church's OPS is around .800.

Long story short, even if Church fails, the Braves win. No more Francoeur. As Martha Stewart would say...it's a good thing.

[sdp]

UZR says Church and Francoeur are essentially the same defender. Church will have more power outside of Citi Field and he's a good OBP guy.

[JanShan12]

I was not surprised and even happy to see Francoeur was moved, but am surprised it was to the Mets. If Francoeur keeps being himself, we definitely came out on top in this trade.

[Wahoo]

This is definitely a holy sh*t moment. My first reaction: poor kid. As much as I trashed him, I don't wish the pain he's going to experience if he doesn't produce in New York. It's always risky to trade within the division, but really...I just don't see anyway that this trade would come back to burn us too badly. I mean, seriously, if the "pressure" of Atlanta is a big cause of his problems, what makes anyone think he'd do any better in New York?

[-Dr. Brave-]

You never, ever, never, ever trade with your rival.

Unless the trade weakens said rival.

EDIT: I see Dreamscape beat me to this one.

[BigWorm]

Willie Harris kicks our arse. What do you think Francoeur will do?

[Dreamscape]

Suck?

On another note...if you were on the fence when it comes to buying a Jeff Francoeur jersey, now is the time. Those babies are on clearence.

[sdp]

Willie Harris kicks our arse. What do you think Francoeur will do?
Bases-loaded GIDP to end the inning.

[luvdembravos]

I'm thinking Brian McCann is sad tonight.

[sdp]

I'm thinking Brian McCann is sad tonight.From what I hear, the whole best-friends-buddy-buddy thing is way overblown by the sports media.

[Andy G.]

From what I hear, the whole best-friends-buddy-buddy thing is way overblown by the sports media.
Where do you hear that? I mean, it might be exaggerated a little, but they're definitely pretty close.

[CharlotteBrave]

Seems like a trade both teams made "just because." I don't see it making either club much better or worse.

Hopefully Church stays healthy though, Frenchy was durable.

[Wahoo]

Willie Harris kicks our arse. What do you think Francoeur will do?

Really..what rational reason is there to think that this trade will hurt us? I mean, sure we can always "worry" about some fluke curse resulting from this, but, if anything, I figure this will help us and eventually put the Mets out of their misery.

[Hillbilly]

PARTY AT WORDSLAYER'S PLACE! Beers are on him. :thumbsup:

[luvdembravos]

Hopefully Church stays healthy though, Frenchy was durable.

That was the problem... Braves' fans had to painfully endure his ineptness night after night after night...

[Rynliquid]

Willie Harris kicks our arse. What do you think Francoeur will do?

Willie Harris?

Speaking of future HOFers, I'm sure Jeff will soon join that exalted fraternity of HOF-caliber Brave-killers such as Mickey Morandini, Benito Santiago, Craig Counsell, and Pat Borders before too soon.

[Dreamscape]

...why haven't I set up a word filter to keep Craig Counsell's name from being seen?

[Lauren T.]

From what I hear, the whole best-friends-buddy-buddy thing is way overblown by the sports media.Where do you hear that? I mean, it might be exaggerated a little, but they're definitely pretty close.

I took this (http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd105/Braves_Love/Braves%20vs%20Phillies%207-2-09/P1100095.jpg) on 7/2 at BP. Last year they separated a little, but this year they're as tight as they were in 2007. 2006 was the best, though. They were like velcro. :)

[ScooterBrave]

PARTY AT WORDSLAYER'S PLACE! Beers are on him. :thumbsup:

No, he likes that too much!

[Dreamscape]

You may want to stay away from his basement, though...

[CanadaBravesFan]

You may want to stay away from his basement, though...

Did we ever keep count of how many site members that went there and were never heard from again. I know it was a disturbing and alarming number.

[BigWorm]

Gosh I'm getting killed here. Listen, Francoeur needed to be moved. He had to go. But to the Mets? If he turns his career around, it's going to haunt us forever. Why not ship him out to Kansas City?

[CanadaBravesFan]

Gosh I'm getting killed here. Listen, Francoeur needed to be moved. He had to go. But to the Mets? If he turns his career around, it's going to haunt us forever. Why not ship him out to Kansas City?


That is what I would have wanted. Out of sight, out of mind. I would have held on to him until the Jays have their fire sale. Oh well......

[Dreamscape]

Maybe the Royals never really wanted him. I know everyone assumed they did, but maybe they had no use for a guy with a sub-.700 OPS.

[BigWorm]

Just heard an interview with Ryan Church on the Braves pre-game show on the radio. He's a friend of Chipper's (hmmm.) and he basically said that he knows everything about the Mets there is to know, and he can't wait to share that information with Bobby Cox and the rest of the guys. He also said he knows exactly where to play all the Mets hitters.

Now you know, Jeffrey won't be able to remember half the **** from Atlanta.

Maybe this isn't so bad.

[Hobbes]

Did we ever keep count of how many site members that went there and were never heard from again. I know it was a disturbing and alarming number.

Langerhansgirl is still down there right now.

As for Jeff, I'm kind of with Worm here. I love that he's gone, but I hate that it's to a division rival. Nothing would suck more than having a revived Jeff Francoeur helping the Mets to lead the division over the next few years. Sure the odds of that are low, but it wouldn't bother me if he was super successful on the West coast somewhere. It will bother me if he is successful with the Muts.

As for the fans, I don't think they will have enough invested in Jeff to ride him that hard. He's got no expectations going there.

[RiknTN]

look at it this way.............even if he turns it around in NY we only have to hate him 19 times a year..........here he wasn't going to turn it around and we had to hate him for 162 games a year.............so that's a positive 143 game gain

[sdp]

The odds of this trade coming back to bite us are about as slim as Chino Cadahia passing on a fifth donut on the breakfast bar in the team hotel.

[Andy G.]

Seriously though, are the Braves going to keep Church and Anderson in the same outfield? If we're platooning Diaz and Church in right and letting Anderson play everyday in left, our offense will still have a hard time scoring runs. Church is like Anderson with better defense. Their offense is probably a wash. I'm really hoping that this is leading to another trade that brings in a right handed hitter that will actually help the offense to score enough runs to win games.

[JanShan12]

On another note...if you were on the fence when it comes to buying a Jeff Francoeur jersey, now is the time. Those babies are on clearence.

Ha! I just bought my fiance a Francoeur jersey this past Christmas! :(

[GeneGarberForPrez]

UZR says Church and Francoeur are essentially the same defender. Church will have more power outside of Citi Field and he's a good OBP guy.

It's tough for me to agree with this first statement. Francoeur has one of the best right-field arms in the league. Not only does he have his fair share of outfield assists, I think he prevents more from trying to advance than we realize.

I for one am not really keen on this deal. As far as I can tell, they are basically the same guy offensively. Church's OPS and OBP are about 50 points higher, but the rest of the numbers are pretty close. Not to mention the fact that this takes another right-handed bat out of the lineup.

I think Francoeur's age and perceived potential could have gotten the Braves a little more back.

[hoosjon]

metsblog sounds like they agree. We all sound like we're happier to be rid of our player than we are to be getting the OTHER player.

http://www.metsblog.com/2009/07/10/news-mets-acquire-francoeur/

[Dreamscape]

Jeff Francoeur has been horrible for a year-and-a-half. You typically can't get a major league player in return for that, but the Braves did and while, yes, Francoeur has a nice arm, he was also limited in range. Church has more range and one player who will hate this deal is Gregor Blanco. The only value Blanco provided to Cox was the ability to play center. Church can provide that now.

The biggest thing to me is that Church will never battle for his placement amongst the worst seasons in total outs. If one counting stat should be looked at, it should be that. Outs. Church will do a better job of finding a way on base, which extends innings, and puts pitchers in tougher situations. The most important offensive trait in baseball is getting on base because no matter how you slice, it means you aren't making an out. Francoeur was an absolute black hole in that category.

Maybe he will somehow put it all together. I've been hearing that he would for awhile now. Yes, the fact they essentially got another LH outfielder to platoon seems odd, but I think the Braves are better right now than they were yesterday. That's all you can possibly ask.

[Hobbes]

It's tough for me to agree with this first statement. Francoeur has one of the best right-field arms in the league. Not only does he have his fair share of outfield assists, I think he prevents more from trying to advance than we realize.

Yes, but aside from that arm he is really a subpar defender. I agree his arm (or the threat of it) provides a benefit, but I have to believe that Church does a better job with his routes and running down balls.

[KB 34]

Good luck to Francoeur in dealing with the media when he says stupid things because he's going to need it. I simply move the deal because the Braves traded complete garbage for a below average outfielder. As far as trading him to the Mets, if he's as bad as we've talked about and the Braves agree enough to trade him to the Mets I'm not worried too much. My feeling is to recover as a player he needs to be sent down to AAA until he can handle minor league pitching. If the Mets try it I have no reason to suspect he'll behave any differently than before. I give all the credit in the world for pulling the plug on the situation and finding a way to deal him for a significant upgrade in RF.

[Chris_Moderato]

The fear of being burned by the Mets has made some of us forget how altogether terrible Frenchy has been for the past 2 1/2 seasons. Jeff Francoeur sucks. He sucks all-around. He has flashes of Major League ballplaying ability, but he is no Major Leaguer. The fact that we got someone to take him off of our hands and we got a Major League player in return is a f***ing steal.

Frenchy will never get it together. He won't put together a Major League career as anything more than a defensive replacement. The difference is now we can throw him sliders low and away and strike him out and the Mets have to suffer.

Today is a good day to be a Braves fan.

[KB 34]

This move has the feel of a Mets move from say, 2000. The Mets have just acquired a washed up hitter who makes way more money than he's worth and sucks. Fans worry that this player is going to play like they're 10 years younger (or in this case like they're 90% smarter) and things turn out just wonderful. The difference is they didn't bail out and improve the Braves on top of getting said player, at least I can't remember a direct move like that. Enjoy the moment while it lasts because we haven't gotten many like this in a while and who doesn't like remembering the Braves breaking the Mets hearts all the time?

[Dreamscape]

Saw on Metsblog that the last deal the Braves made with the Mets was in the offseason of 1996. Greg McMichael for Paul Byrd. I think we were re-acquiring McMichael and dealing Byrd away, but I dunno. I don't really care. It really is amazing how long it has been between deals for these two clubs.

Elsewhere, Arroyo just shut out the Mets. Yeah, that Bronson Arroyo.

Have fun with Francoeur, New York. The French Prince has given up his throne.

[Hobbes]

I'm just glad to get rid of that damn nickname.

[Middle Man]

The fear of being burned by the Mets has made some of us forget how altogether terrible Frenchy has been for the past 2 1/2 seasons. Jeff Francoeur sucks. He sucks all-around. He has flashes of Major League ballplaying ability, but he is no Major Leaguer. The fact that we got someone to take him off of our hands and we got a Major League player in return is a f***ing steal.

Frenchy will never get it together. He won't put together a Major League career as anything more than a defensive replacement. The difference is now we can throw him sliders low and away and strike him out and the Mets have to suffer.

Today is a good day to be a Braves fan.

I agree with this post in its entirety. People also seem to be assuming that he'll be with the Mets for years to come. Folks, in 2 1/2 months, Jeffrey is out of a job. If he's gonna torment us, he'd better do it quick.

[Dreamscape]

Bottom line is...did the Turkey underwear also go to New York cause then I'm not so sure about this trade.

[BraveFan]

I think we all agree that Francoeur needed to be traded and that Church is an upgrade but by no means an answer to our problems. Given Church and Diaz's splits when it comes to hitting against righties and lefties there def should be a platoon in right field. The question then becomes at what position do the Braves upgrade next and get that much talked about right handed power bat. We know it won't be CF, 3B, or C and probably won't be SS or 2B, could it be LF or 1B?

Lineup with current roster:

McLouth CF
Prado 2B
Chipper 3B
McCann C
Escobar SS
Church / Diaz RF
Anderson LF
Kotchman 1B

[BraveFan]

Haha Mets fans around the web are asking if Francoeur has any Hispanic roots ;)

[wordslayer©]

Wow....a lot of thoughts here.

Heard that the mets got cash in the deal. Should have been about 10 million dollars.

I can see why both clubs would make the deal. As much as I hate Francoeur, I can see why a team would want to take a flyer on him. It could pay off. As horrible as Francouer has been, he could still come around a be a decent ball player.

I'm reminded of when the Von Hayes was traded from the phillies. Someone told Lennie Dykstra that he was traded and Dykstra said, "great trade." And then a few minutes later he said, "Who'd we get for him?"

For the past two years, Francouer has been worse than bad....so bad that words can't even begin to do the situation justice. This little change, since Francoeur was so bad, could really be a nice addition. The ole addition by subtraction thing.

I know that having power is nice, but you can still be a 90 win team without having much of it, IF you have some guys that don't produce a helluva lot of outs. This does help.

I feel toward Francoeur like I did about Andruw Jones, but only worse. I don't care if he becomes an all star......doesn't matter to me...I just wanted him gone.

I think he was a lousy defensive player. I think he was an incredibly dumb hitter, and I think he was given way too much playing time.

Francouer will probably never be hated in New York like some of us here hated him. This is only because no other team will give him the amount of at bats that we gave him, If he sucks as bad for them as he did for us.

As for me, without a doubt, the most hated player that I've ever had to bear witness to. I want to blame Francoeur for it, but it's Bobby and the GM that you have to channel your anger toward, because they could have stopped the carnage long ago by just sitting him down or sending him down.

What a total miserable pitiful excuse of a ball player. So many runners left on base. Such a dismal failure. And the team just kept plugging him in the lineup and sending him out there. Time after time after time....I don't care who we get....just thank god he isn't wearing an atlanta uniform any more.

[wordslayer©]

Ha! I just bought my fiance a Francoeur jersey this past Christmas! :(

Why?

Did she wreck your car or something?

[slowride]

Where to start......

I haven't been this disappointed in the Braves front office in a LONG time; if ever.

Hey..I have a great idea guys! Lets trade a 25 year old gold glove right fielder, who had a bad season hitting and has been improving since then, for a 30 year old .280 ceiling mediocre right fielder!

Wow Wren....YOU'RE A ****ING GENIUS!

Listen, I have been a Braves fan since I was 5. I was born one. But when I say I hope Frenchy becomes the elite player he was meant to be.....I mean it.

I hope he hits a grand slam off of God-sent Hanson. I hope he becomes known as the Brave Killer. I hope he names his son Turner.

This is the most GOD AWFUL trade I could imagine.

Congratulations Atlanta. You got what you wished for. Now i'll sit back and sip a cold one as I see the old saying prove true.

This is a dark day.

[BigWorm]

Wow....a lot of thoughts here.

Heard that the mets got cash in the deal. Should have been about 10 million dollars.

Holy poop Slayer. I think I peed my pants.:D

[luvdembravos]

Just heard an interview with Ryan Church on the Braves pre-game show on the radio. He's a friend of Chipper's (hmmm.) and he basically said that he knows everything about the Mets there is to know, and he can't wait to share that information with Bobby Cox and the rest of the guys.

Hmmm, sounds like a bitter man.

[BigWorm]

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/sweetspot/0-4-45/Mets-and-Braves-swap-RFs.html

Rob Neyer of ESPN is killing Omar Minaya

[Hobbes]

Hey..I have a great idea guys! Lets trade a 25 year old gold glove right fielder, who had a bad season hitting and has been improving since then, for a 30 year old .280 ceiling mediocre right fielder!

Look, I understand that you are a fan of Francoeur's, but no way can you say he has been improving.

We're almost exactly at the halfway point this season and Jeff has had almost exactly half the at-bats as he did last season. He has a lower OBP, lower SLG and lower OPS than last year (an OPS+ of 68 :no:). He is on-pace to have fewer home runs (11 last year), fewer RBI (71 last year), fewer runs (70 last year), and fewer doubles (33 last year).

Only his average and strikeouts have improved marginally. His average of .250 is .11 points higher and he is on-pace to finish with 20 fewer strikeouts (111 last year). But neither of these stats is exactly positive.

There is simply nothing to indicate he is improving or that last year was an anomaly. He's dreadful. Perhaps the change of scenery will change his fortunes, but he wasn't turning it around here in Atlanta. No other team would have put up with him for this long.

Also, his Gold Glove award does not make him a gold-glove caliber fielder.

[luvdembravos]

As of now, I will wish the best for Francoeur (but I'm not hoping for too much success since he's going to the Mets). He seemed to be a nice kid but he was an awful ball player. The Braves were so patient with this guy and gave him every opportunity to turn around his game. Now I'm just waiting to hear what he says about his former club. If he trashes the Braves - after they gave him every break imaginable -then I'll label him a classless jerk. If he's humble and admits that he could've/should've done better in Atlanta, I'll continue to wish him well.

BUT DAMN IT FEELS GOOD NOW THAT HE'S GONE :D:D:D:D

[sdp]

The Braves sent $270,218.00 to the Mets. I’ll take a check, too, Frank.

[IkeWagner]

Somebody pinch me.

[Chris_Moderato]

Where to start......This is a dark day.

I remember when Frenchy came up in 2005 and hit that home run in his first game. Damn, that was exciting. I'd been hearing about this guy for a couple years and it was great to see he come flying out of the gate the way he did. The team saw the marketing potential of this clean-cut young Christian kid with straight, pearly whites and a positive attitude and they hung the proverbial "franchise" tag on him...before he had proved himself.

That was the problem. Frenchy played a year and a half of, arguably, promising baseball before the league figured him out. While he may have tried to make adjustments, he never really seemed to stick to those adjustments.

My remaining support for Frenchy came apart for two reasons, really. The first one wasn't his fault. I got really, really tired of the organization cramming him down our throats as the new "face of the franchise", in spite of the fact that his production was plummeting. I honestly believe they kept running that kid out to right field, in spite of his lousy performance, in order to sell more jerseys. I'm all for the Braves making money as a franchise. You have to make yours, you know? But they aren't in the business of selling shirts...they're in the business of producing a successful baseball team. They chose t-shirts over winning- that might be a little hyperbolic, but you get the idea. They promoted and played, on a daily basis, an under-performing, minor-leaguer who cost us wins.

The second thing that killed Frenchy for me was his reaction to the demotion last year. As soon as he opened his mouth and aired his grievances about the demotion in the media, he lost me. I can understand being upset when you're demoted, but the only person responsible for his demotion was him. He didn't see that. He believed his own press. He believed he had the organization by the short hairs, and he believed he deserved to be on the Major League roster. The nature of his reaction to the demotion was the last straw for me. If you don't want to improve, you don't deserve the support of the fans.

I hated to see Frenchy fall apart the way he did. I wanted him to succeed. I loved that influx of homegrown, Georgia talent we had back in 2005. Unfortunately it didn't work out for him. Hopefully he won't take it too hard when Tommy Hanson spends the next five years striking him out.

[jamminHANES]

It's tough for me to agree with this first statement. Francoeur has one of the best right-field arms in the league. Not only does he have his fair share of outfield assists, I think he prevents more from trying to advance than we realize.

I for one am not really keen on this deal. As far as I can tell, they are basically the same guy offensively. Church's OPS and OBP are about 50 points higher, but the rest of the numbers are pretty close. Not to mention the fact that this takes another right-handed bat out of the lineup.

I think Francoeur's age and perceived potential could have gotten the Braves a little more back.

Honestly, Church probably has a better arm than Francoeur does. More accurate to say the least.

[JanShan12]

Why?

Did she wreck your car or something?

Ha! I thought I was being nice. He was her favorite player. She's jumped on the McLouth train now.

[triple73]

Should be interesting since we are playing the Mets on Thursday ....still will miss him.

[Hobbes]

Welcome to the board triple73.

[jlcct]

I'm so happy.
I felt like he was a black hole in our lineup for so long and management keeping him out there was like a black hole in their evaluation of what was happening with our team. If we don't make the playoffs, this year will have still been a drastic improvement. Yeah! I'm sooooo happy. I think that kid had our management and some very confused fans seriously hypnotized. Who broke the spell? I'm throwing a party tonight!

[Hobbes]

Day 2, and I still can't believe he was traded. Did anybody really think the Braves would have the gumption to do it? I didn't.

[The Rap]

[B]I am happy he was dealt and donlt really care where. It is sad because of what we thought he was coming up through our system and after his incredible debut. One thing keeps crossing my mind is that he hurt himself terribly with the Braves with how he reacted to being sent down last season and that was for his own good./B]

[wordslayer©]

Day 2, and I still can't believe he was traded. Did anybody really think the Braves would have the gumption to do it? I didn't.

I gotta admit......I had just about given up hope. After sucking for as long as he did WITHOUT them ever sitting him down, it just seemed that there was nothing bad enough he could do to make them sit him down, no less get rid of him.

In the past few weeks, I thought it might happen, but I was afraid that they'd just trade him for someone that was every bit as bad as he was, and also us having to eat some money, so I just couldn't see anything positive coming from a trade.

I had kind of thought they may just bite the bullet, keep him out of the lineup some now, and just hope for the best.

I really like this move, though. Church, if platooned properly, really does help this team some. And also, we don't have a long term salary/commitment to Church, so he is a nice stopgap measure until some of the young talent gets to the major leagues.

This is a very good move for us in the here and now. This keeps us from having to make some type desperation trade. This will allow us some time to get Heyward and Schafer back to the team.

I like moves like this....simple moves that aren't hard to make. People are saying it's tit for tat, but it's not. We've replaced an out sucking machine with major league average corner production, via a platoon.

Although not a ground breaker, this is a nice trade that Wren did.

If Francoeur gets to play a lot in new york, and I can't imagine that he will, but it will be fun to watch the new york fans/media rip him. He will begin to see what a Disneyland atlanta was to play for.

[luvdembravos]

If Francoeur gets to play a lot in new york, and I can't imagine that he will, but it will be fun to watch the new york fans/media rip him. He will begin to see what a Disneyland atlanta was to play for.

I totally agree.

In a couple of interviews since the trade, Francoeur has emphasized how great it will be to play in front of a packed house every night in NY. Be careful what you wish for Jeffrey ... New York fans have little tolerance for crappy ball players.

[IkeWagner]

Where to start......

I haven't been this disappointed in the Braves front office in a LONG time; if ever.

Hey..I have a great idea guys! Lets trade a 25 year old gold glove right fielder, who had a bad season hitting and has been improving since then, for a 30 year old .280 ceiling mediocre right fielder!

Wow Wren....YOU'RE A ****ING GENIUS!

Listen, I have been a Braves fan since I was 5. I was born one. But when I say I hope Frenchy becomes the elite player he was meant to be.....I mean it.

I hope he hits a grand slam off of God-sent Hanson. I hope he becomes known as the Brave Killer. I hope he names his son Turner.

This is the most GOD AWFUL trade I could imagine.

Congratulations Atlanta. You got what you wished for. Now i'll sit back and sip a cold one as I see the old saying prove true.

This is a dark day.

.............right

[Dreamscape]

This is a dark day.
I don't want to see one poster getting ganged up on, but really?

I mean, really? Where was this supposed improvement? Where was this golden boy? He had a nice two month stretch his rookie year and a pretty decent (hardly amazing) junior campaign. Other than that, he has been a massive disappointment. Yes, when you trade youth, you take a chance it will bite you in the butt, but Jeff Francoeur had four years to prove himself in the majors. The results = .266/.308/.424. When you adjust his OPS for league and park factors, his adjusted OPS was 11% worse than the average player. In many ways, Ryan Church is that average player, except throughout his career, he has played better than the league average. Maybe you take the Citi Field away from him and he once again provides that production.

I am pretty excited about the prospect of a Diaz/Church platoon. Frankly, if the Braves focus all of their attention on finding a masher for 1B and putting Schafer in center (provided he shows improvement offensively), moving McLouth to left, you have yourself a much improved outfield for 2010. You were not going to get that with Francoeur in right field.

Francoeur's OPS this year was worse than last year. Taking a look at the OPS leader board, Francoeur ranked 162nd among 167 players eligible for the OPS title. Of the five who are worse, three are middle infielders (I include 3B-in-name-only Emilio Bonifacio), Jason Kendall, and Willy Taveres. Last year, he placed 142nd, but again, only five other guys with worse OPS's were eligible. Kendall and Taveres were also on last year's "how the hell do these guys stay in the lineup?" list. The guy has been regressing, not progressing. Maybe the old adage of a change of scenery will help him. I doubt it because he's an incredibly flawed player, but maybe he can find a small shade of who he was supposed to be. True, he has time before he hits his "prime," but really, I didn't want to see him get penciled in 155-160 times just to see if he figures it out.

I know, you can dismiss this post because I acted like OPS was the be-all, end-all of numbers and it certainly isn't, but it gives you a pretty solid impression of offensive productivity. And Jeff Francouer was the complete opposite of "productivity." He didn't add speed to the game and wasn't a good enough defender. This is a guy who was playing a power hitter's position and doing it just about as bad as you possibly do it. I will not miss this guy. I know I never liked him, never supported him, was against the Braves calling him up, etc...so my opinion has always been jaded of Jeff Francoeur, but good night, French Prince. I will be much happier to have a guy in the lineup who knows that the purpose of that thing you're holding in the batter's box is to help you get on base, not swing at every damn pitch in the hemisphere.

[Hobbes]

Be careful what you wish for Jeffrey ... New York fans have little tolerance for crappy ball players.
I can't remember a single time where Francoeur was booed by the home fans. That will be quickly remedied in NY.

[slowride]

I don't want to see one poster getting ganged up on, but really?


Trust me...from this board it was expected.

Now I'm off to get my free slurpee (it's free slurpee day) from 7/11.

[Andy G.]

Trust me...from this board it was expected.

Now I'm off to get my free slurpee (it's free slurpee day) from 7/11.
Hey man, I'm a Francoeur fan too. While there are some things I disagree with, like the notion that the Braves should have gotten rid of Francoeur a long time ago(the year before last he was a 23 year old with a near .800 OPS), I can't disagree with the fact that for the past year and a half he's been an awful baseball player. All the defensive skills in the world couldn't make up for his terrible hitting, and he's not even a great fielder. You're upset to see him go, as are a lot of fans, but don't deny the facts.

[JanShan12]

Now I'm off to get my free slurpee (it's free slurpee day) from 7/11.

We just did the same an hour ago. I love 7-11 and slurpee's!

[Rynliquid]

I just woke up screaming.

The nightmare?

Francoeur accepted the multi-year $40-$50 million contract we tendered him in 2004.

[-Dr. Brave-]

Day 2, and I still can't believe he was traded. Did anybody really think the Braves would have the gumption to do it? I didn't.

You know, I still can't believe it myself. My wife can't figure out why I've been walking around with a smile on my face.

[Lauren T.]

Jan, they sell McLouth t-shirts at the Champs sporting goods store in my closest mall. :)

I wrote a little about Jeff at my blog, and have his final interview as a Brave there as well, if anyone's interested.

[slowride]

You're upset to see him go, as are a lot of fans, but don't deny the facts.

I'm not denying any facts. Post any stat you want; and I'll say...yep that was his stat.

I'm still going to sit back, sip a cold one, and watch Atlanta fans get what they wished for.

It was sickening to be watching the Mets......and with bases loaded and one out rooting for THEIR guy to get a hit. A single and 2 RBI later I just felt depressed. That was the first time I've ever wished the Mets goodwill. Even with Glavine, at least he had offers and CHOSE the Mets. That was his own doing. Jeff was forced to the Mets.

I won't complain anymore. It does no good. It just hurts seeing him wear #12 for the New York Mets, and helping them win ball games.

I'll miss the suckers who actually thought they could run on him...but then again maybe I'll watch the braves do it. So I guess I'll still see it.

I really hope he's with a different team next year (out of the division).

[KB 34]

Francoeur was traded to the Mets, not the prison leagues. As a Mets player he's still going to make a ridiculous salary I frankly believe he didn't deserve and certainly hasn't earned with his performance this season. Despite how much we rip the Mets it's still a major league team that typically competes and will give him a chance to succeed. I have no sympathy for Francoeur being traded there.

[Wahoo]

I'm not denying any facts. Post any stat you want; and I'll say...yep that was his stat.

I'm still going to sit back, sip a cold one, and watch Atlanta fans get what they wished for.

It was sickening to be watching the Mets......and with bases loaded and one out rooting for THEIR guy to get a hit. A single and 2 RBI later I just felt depressed. That was the first time I've ever wished the Mets goodwill. Even with Glavine, at least he had offers and CHOSE the Mets. That was his own doing. Jeff was forced to the Mets.

I won't complain anymore. It does no good. It just hurts seeing him wear #12 for the New York Mets, and helping them win ball games.

I'll miss the suckers who actually thought they could run on him...but then again maybe I'll watch the braves do it. So I guess I'll still see it.

I really hope he's with a different team next year (out of the division).

People who run on him, probably did because he misplayed the ball in the first place. He's not a good major league baseball player. If you can present any evidence to the contrary, please do.

Jeff Francoeur sucks. Period. End of sentence.

[slowride]

My evidence? For his career it seems to be parabolic thus far. I'll simply refer to his body of work. If you disagree...then congrats. I don't give a crap.

You can end your sentences three times each all you want. It doesn't mean much to me.

[Dreamscape]

Friggin made me have to google define "parabolic." I thought it was some virus.

[Hobbes]

Friggin made me have to google define "parabolic." I thought it was some virus.

Liberal arts majors...:rolleyes:

[Dreamscape]

Polisci, actually. I just don't like words.

[-Dr. Brave-]

Friggin made me have to google define "parabolic." I thought it was some virus.

Actually it's a medical condition... parabolic syndrome... normally diagnosed when lying down during an exam at the doctor's office.

[Dreamscape]

You sure it's not "weak popfly to first on an 0-2 slider a foot outside?"

[-Dr. Brave-]

You sure it's not "weak popfly to first on an 0-2 slider a foot outside?"

No, that's how you define Jeff Francoeur. Parabolic syndrome happens much more slowly.

[Freddy_Ballgame]

I think Chris and I have about the same thoughts on Francoeur. I looked forward to the guy being the next big thing and he didn't get there. When the organization finally realized he was falling apart, they demote him and he goes off. That was when I lost interest in seeing him succeed. If he was so full of himself that he couldn't realize he earned his demotion maybe he should've been sent to A ball. Bringing him back before he even unpacked was nothing more than a team collapse. Bowing to this guy cost them respect and maybe they're attempting to regain some respect.
Church is a solid replacement and may even improve his production in Atlanta. I hope Francoeur finds himself and becomes a legit big leaguer.
Now I wonder how many of the Francoeur haters will be this elated when guys like KJ go under the same microscope. Perhaps Francoeur has made the team decide they don't need to give those guys 3 or 4 years to be bad before moving them out. It will be interesting to see.

[luvdembravos]

Saw a pic of Francoeur in a Mets' uniform for the first time today. Got to admit he looks better in that uni.

[sdp]

Parabolic, you say?

http://img18.imageshack.us/img18/1802/parabolic.png

Yeah, that sounds about right.

[Lauren T.]

I could follow your graph better if I knew what the X and Y axes stood for.

[Chris_Moderato]

I could follow your graph better if I knew what the X and Y axes stood for.

Perhaps, but the question is, would you really want to?

[Lauren T.]

...No, I don't. Never mind, then. :D